Cumhuriyet or the Republic represents the radical and even tumultuous change of the Turkish nation over the last century, which is the ultimate accomplishment of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk and his revolutionary cadres.
The declaration of the Turkish Republic on October 29, 1923, was a revolution which transformed the society, politics, and culture not only by changing the name of the government but also by initiating a revolutionary, top-down reorganization of the state, bringing to an end the six-century old Ottoman Empire and ushering in a completely new epoch of modern states.
This gigantic transformation of a multiethnic, imperial theocracy into a single, non-religious nation state is one of the most alluring stories of the twentieth century history.
The Ashes of Empire: Birth of a Nation
The republic came as a direct result of simmer of the remains of the World War I and the Turkish War of Independence (1919-1922). Still debilitated by decades of losses in conquered country and inner stagnation, the Ottoman Empire was defeated in a crushing fashion, which caused its practical disintegration by the Allied powers.
The Anatolian heartlands were occupied by the foreign occupation which brought about a nationalist resistance movement which was catalyzed by the military mastermind Mustafa Kemal Pasha. He opposed the collaborationist regime of the Sultan and organized the Turkish nationhood under the national sovereignty flag.
It is the triumph of the Turkish nationalists which guaranteed not only physical independence but also a clear break with the past. When Sultanate was abolished in 1922 it was the first indication that they are willing to establish a state based on popular will rather than dynastic rule.
After the success of the War of Independence, and the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923, the way was cleared to the official declaration of the Cumhuriyet.
Atatürk’s Six Arrows: Defining the Republican Ideology
Mustafa Kemal, who was later given the surname Ataturk (Father of the Turks) realized that the political freedom needed an equally tempered cultural and social freedom. He established his fundamental ideas or Kemalism as the ideology of his new state. The character of the Republic was based on these principles, which were commonly represented as the “Six Arrows” namely:
- Republicanism (Cumhuriyetçilik): Advocating for a state where the people hold supreme power, electing their representatives and leaders. This principle enshrined the very system of government.
- Populism (Halkçılık): Emphasizing national unity and solidarity, rejecting class distinctions and promoting equality among all citizens of Turkey.
- Secularism (Laiklik): The most transformative and contentious principle. It mandated the separation of religion from state affairs, education, and law, moving Turkey away from its Islamic imperial past.
- Reformism (İnkılapçılık): A commitment to continuous, modernizing change, ensuring that Turkish society would never regress or fall behind contemporary global standards.
- Nationalism (Milliyetçilik): Focused on fostering a modern national identity, emphasizing a common language, culture, and shared destiny within the defined borders of the nation state.
- Statism (Devletçilik): Providing for state control over key sectors of the economy, particularly during the early, capital scarce development phase, guiding national industrialization.
The Great Transformation: Social and Legal Reforms
The first few decades of the Republic were marked by a veritable swarm of reforms that were aimed at dragging the Turkish society into the modern world. These transformations radically changed the daily life and the institutional framework. The main objective was to drop the old, religious and traditional legal systems that were a legacy of the Ottoman system and to put in place codified and secular laws, along the lines of the western European example.
Key reforms included:
- Abolition of the Caliphate (1924): This move finalized the separation of state and religious authority, dissolving the centuries old symbol of Sunni Islamic political leadership.
- The Law of Unification of Education (Tevhid i Tedrisat 1924): The state centralized all education under secular control, shutting down traditional religious schools (madrasas) and ensuring a modern curriculum.
- The Adoption of the Turkish Civil Code (1926): Turkey replaced the Islamic Sharia law with a modified version of the Swiss Civil Code, granting equal rights to women in marriage, divorce, and inheritance.
- The Hat Law (1925): The traditional fez was outlawed and replaced with Western style headgear, a symbolic but powerful rejection of Ottoman identity in favor of a Western appearance.
- Adoption of the Latin Alphabet (1928): The difficult Arabic script was replaced with a phonetic Latin alphabet, dramatically increasing literacy rates and further cutting ties with the Ottoman past.
- Enfranchisement of Women (1930-1934): Turkish women gained the right to vote in local elections in 1930 and the right to vote and hold office in general elections in 1934, placing Turkey ahead of many Western nations in this regard.
These sweeping changes established the enduring character of the Turkish Republic: fiercely nationalist, structurally secular, and firmly oriented towards Western civilization.
Republicanism’s Evolution and Challenges
After the death of Ataturk in 1938, he was taken over by his heir Ismet Inonu who steered the country through the volatile World War II. In 1946, Turkey shifted to a multi-party democratic system that became one of the crucial events in the political history of this country. The formation of a Democrat Party and its triumph in the 1950 election marked the termination of the single party age and empowerment of democratic institutions.
The Turkish democratic journey was rogue though. The strains between the violently secular, Kemalist establishment (the military and judiciary were often symbolic of it) and the conservative, religious, and traditional sections of society, which were growing louder, led to a great level of political polarization. The division, unfortunately, caused the political instability that reoccurred several times (1960, 1971, 1980, 1997) which, according to the army, was aimed at protecting the secular values of Ataturk and creating order.
The second part of the twentieth century was marked by the stabilization of Turkey as a member of the NATO which was strategically significant through the cold war. The Turkish economy was slowly transformed to a market-driven economy, which is state-controlled, resulting in urbanization, industrialization, and globalization into the global economy.
The New Millennium and the Shifting Landscape
The beginning of the twenty first century brought with it a new political dynamism due to the ascendancy of Justice and Development Party (AKP) in 2002. Led by Recep Tayyip Erdogan, AKP, based on conservative democratic and Islamic political tradition, has dared the traditional hegemony of secular elite. The initial ten years of the AKP regime were marked with great economic development and democratization with a view to fulfilling the requirements of the European Union membership.
Nevertheless, the second decade has been marked by a growing executive strength, greater attention to traditional Islamic values in the life of the population, and a multifaceted reconsideration of the inalienable Kemalist platforms of the Republic.
The debate on secularism, historical identity and optimum balance between democratic participation and state security have remained the focus of discussion by most countries. In the year 2017, the shift to a presidential government essentially changed the system of governance, which centralized power in the presidency.
Looking Ahead: The Second Century of the Cumhuriyet
The Turkish Republic is entering its second century, and it is a multifaceted and complicated reality. It is a strong regional force with a dynamic economy and young and dynamic population.
The principles that the Cumhuriyet was founded on are still the main focus of its identity or definition, although the definition and application of these principles is always dynamic against the backdrop of the forces of globalization, changing political majorities, and identities in culture.
The dilemma facing Turkey is how it can decide to balance its closely guarded secular principles and its democracy which is subjected to a majority of the conservative populace. It also has to strike the balance between nationalist interests and global obligations.
The radical vision of Ataturk is a theme that is still being discussed by the national discourse, and it still serves to point that the Turkish Republic, which was born of revolution and created by reform, is still a work in progress that attests to a century of dedicated national building. The history of Cumhuriyet is the history of a country that was seeking to establish itself on the border of East and West, tradition and modernity.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About the Turkish Cumhuriyet
Why did the Turkish Republic adopt the Latin alphabet instead of the traditional Ottoman script?
In 1928 the Turkish Republic became the first country to make use of the Latin alphabet as the modernization of Ataturk. Arabic script resembled the Ottoman script and was complicated and therefore led to low literacy levels. The new phonetic Latin alphabet made reading and writing easier and made it possible to mass educate and bring about cultural separation with the Ottoman past.
What does the term “Laiklik” mean in the context of the Turkish Republic?
The Turkish word of secularism is Laiklik. In Turkey, it insists on the division of state and religion. The state has an official policy of the nonintervention in all religions, although the government regulates the religious affairs with the help of Presidency of religious Affairs (Diyanet). Laiklik makes sure that the religious law does not interfere with the secular law and education of a state.
How did the Turkish military view its role in protecting the Cumhuriyet?
The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) in history considered itself the ultimate guarantor of the foundations of the Republic which were secularism and the unity of the nation, which was the work of Ataturk. This self-conception triggered the number of political interventions during the second half of the 20th century which the military explained as the need to defend the constitutional order and the Kemalist values against the perceived threats.
